Crime Prevention Tips

Crime Prevention

We have over 2000 neighborhoods in Albuquerque participating in the program, and we would like to organize (or "reorganize") your neighborhood on a block-by-block basis.

Initially, we look for someone who would be willing to host in their home an organizing meeting for their block. If you would like to be a host, follow this procedure:

Talk with some of your neighbors on your block to see if there is general interest in participating in a Neighborhood Watch.

If so, and if you are willing to host the initial organizing meeting, call us to schedule at 244-6644.

We will then work with you to set up the meeting. (Toward the end of the organizing meeting, the neighborhood will officially select someone to be the Block Captain, who is our contact person with the group from that point onward.)

We have a wide variety of activities for organized Neighborhood Watch groups, ranging from participation in the annual National Night Out celebration the first Tuesday of each August, to your Block Captain's option to join the Albuquerque Block Captain's Association (ABCA).

The Albuquerque Block Captain's Association was formed on June 1, 1985. Any block captain of a Neighborhood Watch group organized through APD Crime Prevention is eligible to join. The ABCA conducts two informational/business conferences each year and publishes its own newsletter, "The ABCA Alert." The ten-page twice-per-year publication is sent ABCA members and contains a variety of crime prevention information. For more information, please contact APD Crime Prevention at 244-6644.

General Presentation - This summary program urges neighbors to join with the criminal justice system to help themselves become less vulnerable targets for criminals. Speaking to civic organizations, church groups, neighborhood associations, service clubs and other groups about the problem of residential burglary, our staff encourages those attending to host Neighborhood Watch organizing meetings for their neighborhoods.

Neighborhood Watch (Organizing Meeting) - Presented to residents of a one block area (20-25 houses maximum), our staff discusses residential burglary prevention and home security with particular attention to doors, windows, and other potential points of illegal entry. Those attending are registered in the Operation Identification program and are informed of area crime data. By selecting a Block Captain to function as a neighborhood leader in crime prevention, the organized neighborhood may then purchase NOAC (Neighborhood Organized Against Crime) street signs featuring the "Watching Eye." This program is presented only in neighborhoods and residential areas.

Personal Safety - Away from the residence; in your vehicle; at your residence.

Sexual Assault and Rape Prevention - Usually presented to groups of females (but available to anyone), this program discusses personal safety in general, with emphasis on sexual assault and rape prevention. Types of rapists are discussed along with recommended safety measures and prevention techniques. Date rape, rape crisis intervention and related matters are included in the presentation.

Fraud and Con Game Prevention - Senior citizens are frequently targets of con artists who use bunco schemes like the "Pigeon Drop" and the "Bank Examiner" to induce their victims to part with items of value. This presentation makes its audience aware of typical con games and swindles, and teaches them how to avoid becoming victims.

Child Abuse Prevention/Child Safety - Especially useful to those working with children (but available to any interested group), this presentation discusses physical, sexual and emotional abuse, neglect and abduction, along with New Mexico law relating to child abuse reporting requirements. Concerns about child abduction and "stranger-danger" are also addressed. In order to more effectively locate missing or lost children, the Albuquerque Police Department, Crime Prevention Program, in conjunction with the Kinko's Centers in Albuquerque, is implementing an "Emergency Child Information Card Program".

Children's Crime Prevention Program - Using the "McGruff, the Crime Dog" coloring book, this program educates elementary-age children regarding basic matters relating to crime and safety. Subjects covered include securing your belongings, home burglary, telephone caution, personal safety and child abuse victimization. Children are then invited to help McGruff "Take a Bite Out of Crime" and are given a certificate for helping make Albuquerque a safer community.

Crime Prevention through Environmental Design (CPTED) - This newest crime prevention program discusses an approach in which the environment and structures of proposed projects are analyzed to determine what changes and use of technology may result in fewer crime problems in the foreseeable future.